Green Manufacturing Practices as a Tool for Improving Competitiveness in the Light of Egypt's Vision 2030 “An Empirical Study on Egyptian Ceramic Industry

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate the impact of green manufacturing practices on the competitiveness factors of ceramic manufacturing companies in the Arab Republic of Egypt. Design / Methodology / Approach - A tentative list of green manufacturing and competitiveness factors has been developed based on a comprehensive and detailed analysis of the relevant literature. The survey questionnaire contained 27 items, which were developed based on the literature and interviews with three industry experts, specifically representatives of the supply chain, foreign production and sales department. 166 questionnaires were distributed to the sample under study, which is a group of 7 factories that obtained integrated environmental management certificates, and 166 questionnaires were returned. Using the data collected, a specific analysis was carried out via factor analysis to demonstrate reliability and validity. Finding -The results showed that there is a positive impact of green production practices and increasing competitiveness factors represented in reducing (cost - reducing delivery time) and increasing (quality - flexibility) of products and services. Originality / value -This paper presents an empirical investigation of green production practices and fills a gap in the literature related to green production practices to achieve competitiveness factors by applying to the ceramic industry in the Arab Republic of Egypt.